Leisure time for seafarers

"All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." On board a ship, voyages can last up to 3 weeks to a month before land is reached. The seamen have to have some leisure activities in order to relax.

Some larger ships have all the luxuries like swimming pools, gymnasiums, and sports room. Smaller ships have only the officer's lounge. When space is limited, indoor games like darts, carrom, cards, are played in the officer's lounge. Movies, videos,
CDs are freely available. Books, magazines are also available, usually donated by Seamen Mission.
Serious study for professional advancement like
competency exams can also be done during the leisure time.

Even games like table tennis can be played. If there is no sports room, the table may be placed along the alleyways between the cabins. To play table tennis while the ship is rolling is quite an art. Not only the ball moves, but also the player moves because of the ship movement.

The period when the ship is in port is the busiest period for everybody. In addition to extra work, there is also extra play.

Ports offer the seamen plenty of activities, from sightseeing, to
shopping, looking up friends to just to escape to another world.